DaCorte Nominated for Maine Hospital Association’s Caregiver of the Year

Mount Desert Island Hospital has nominated Ellen DaCorte, RN for the Maine Hospital Association's Caregiver of the Year!

When  asked about her position at MDI Hospital, DaCorte answered "I'm so in love with my job. I love the patients - I love my coworkers - I love our unit. It is such a honor to work together to meet the community need and provide a holistic approach to nursing and skilled clinical support."

DaCorte graduated with her Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Johns Hopkins University in 1996. Knowing she wanted to work in women's health she accepted a position in MDI Hospital's Obstetrics Department in 1998. Dr. Katherine Gassman, the Medical Director of the Lisa Stewart Women's Health Center and Director of Obstetrics at MDI Hospital had this to say of DaCorte, "Ellen has an amazing way of keeping an anxious laboring patient calm and focused during deliveries. She has such passion for making out little obstetric unit and newborn nursery such a warm, comfortable place where our patients love to have their babies."

Ellen is a passionate advocate for women's health, her patients and her community. As a member of the Lisa Stewart Women's Health Center Advisory Committee, she has been deeply involved in developing education and outreach programs related to expectant and new mothers, teen intimacy and improving the lives of women and children in the Island community. She has also served her community as a member or the Christian Education Committee of her church, where she worked to develop programming for younger families and children and as a member of the PTO at the Mount Desert Elementary School. Certified Nurse Midwife Tiana Larson said "Ellen is an amazing nurse. Her dedication to both the patients and the staff is incredible. She works hard to make sure that everything gets handled efficiently and her collaborative approach and positive attitude are such assets to MDI Hospital."

DaCorte continues to grow her clinical skills and education.  She is Neonatal Resuscitation Program, Basic Life Support and S.T.A.B.L.E Program certified, a Certified Lactation Counselor, a PeriFACTS educational coordinator, and has been an active member of the hospital's Clinical Excellence Committee for more than a decade. She recently has become her department's Senior Charge Nurse. Mary Glass RN, said "She has done incredible research to make sure we are practicing with the most current, evidence-based standards of care."

Brie Abbe, RN had this to say about Ellen "I have been truly honored and amazed to have Ellen DaCorte as a colleague for the past 5 years. Our OB unit at MDI Hospital has a culture of excellence and I believe that Ellen is a great figurehead and driving force of this culture. She sets a very high bar for those she works with. She does this, as all natural leaders do, by setting an even higher bar for herself. She is invigorated by doing things correctly, improving processes and ensuring the highest level of care for all of her patients."